Dumping-car-valve-operating mechanism.



.J. Goonwm. Y DUMPING GAR VALVE OPERATING MEQHANISM.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 16, 1909.

Patented May 21, 1912.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

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J. M.' GOODWIN. DUMPING GAR VALVE OPERATING MECHANISM.

Patented May 21, 1912.

APPLIOATION IILED JUNE 16, 1909.

I nventor:

by I I I 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

35 which. is located between the inclined and comprises a ratchet detentmechanism for,

v the chain winding shafts of such cars or re- JOHN M.. GOODWIN, 0FSPOKANE,- WASHINGTON.

DUMPING-C-AR-VALVE-OPERATING MECHANISM.

Specification of Letters Patent;

Patented May 21, 1912.

Application filed June 16, 1909. Serial No. 502,432.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN M. Goonwm, a citizen of the United States,residing at Spokane, in the county of Spokane and State of lVashington,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Dumping-Car-Valve-Operating Mechanism, of which the following is a full, true,and concise specification.

My invention relates to mechanism for operating trap or valve doors ofhopper bottom receptacles of railway dumping'cars or other conveyances,and briefly described it ceptacles, which serves as retaining mechanismfor the said shaft while 1t 1s bemg rotated in closing the valves andalso as the releasing mechanismtherefor when it is desired to dump theload, and in its latter function my invention providesa safe andpowerful means for tripping the valves, while weighted with the load,without danger of recoil or kicking back, frequently incident totheunlocking of detents that are heavily loaded.

Referring to the drawings filed herewith, Figure 1 represents the frontelevation of a preferred embodiment of my device; and Fig. 2 is a sideelevation'thereof.

In this preferred form, A represents the 7 side wall and floor of anordinary hopper car having angle irons a riveted to the exterior thereofas a means of securing in place the upright gusset-sheet b, a series ofthe upright portions of the car frame or body, as will be wellunderstood by those familiar with this art. A'strap 0 is secured to thegusset-sheet near its middle and eX- of the said sheet, meeting thedepending extremity of an exterior vertical cleat won the outside of thecar body to which the said strap is firmly secured. This strap and thegusset-sheet form the support for certain fulcrumed parts of the device,which parts are located between them, as indicated in the drawings. Forthe sake of clearness,the strap 0 is broken away in Fig. 1 to show theparts beyond. To the gusset-sheet b is riveted a series of brackets at,one only of which is shownin the drawings, which brackets support thevalve-chain shaft 6, to

which is keyed the ratchet-wheel f, the said twh2tft and wheelconstituting a well known means for closing and supporting dumpingvalves of hopper cars. Its chain connections for this purpose aretherefore not illustrated herein. The teeth of the ratchet wheel f areprovided with shroud flanges f V f on opposite sides and projectingslightly beyond the ends of the teeth, as plainly indicated in thedrawings. The valve chains or any equivalent connection, it will beunderstood, are intended to be wound upon chain-shaft e as a Windlass orotherwise operated by said shaft.

The detent mechanism which cooperates with the ratchet wheel, with thefunctions above referred to, is comprised essentially of a detent leverprovided with a detent tooth for engagement with the teeth of theratchet wheel and also with a fulcrum and a power arm to which a systemof multiplying levers may. be and preferably is connected as a means fordisengaging the detent tooth from M the detent lever is formed by theedge or.

edges of the two shroud flanges f f with which the ratchet wheel isprovided, and

which form an abutment of relatively fixed location upon which the studs75, projecting laterally from the end of the lever eX- tension k find abearing. The normal location of the pivot. h is somewhat inboard of pthe axis of the studs its so that the detent tooth k is urged by gravityinto engagement with the ratchet wheel, but a weight may be added to thelever, as by casting it upon it, as shown at 72,, to facilitate theaction. The fulcrum studs k are also held against their bearing by thesame arrangement.

a The pivot support it is shiftably mounted according to-the preferredform of this invention, by being supported on the end of a short link ifpivotally hinged from a bracket 9 secured to the'under side of the carbody. The pivot'h serves to connect j the power arm of the detent leverwith the link and with. the multiplying levers presently described. Byswinging the link and power arm outwardly, the detent lever is made toswing on its fulcrum studs it to the 'position shown in dotted lines inFig.1,

wherein the detent tooth if becomes released from its engagement withthe teeth of the ratchet wheel, thereby releasing the valves supportedby the shaft 6. In so doing the fulcrum studs 7L move slightly upwardlyon the edges of the shroud flanges, for obvious reasons, and the tooth kis thereby caused to move with the ratchet wheel teeth, while being atthe same time withdrawn from them. The ratchet wheel teeth may besomewhat undercut if need be without interfering with this action, andin any case, the withdrawal of the detent tooth is gradually and easilyaccomplished. The action referred to will be apparent from aconsideration of the full and dotted line position of the detent levershown in Fig. 1. After the release of the ratchet wheel, the pivotalsupport h is shifted back again to its former position wherein thedetent tooth 7L5 rests upon the ratchet wheel teeth and cotiperatestherewith as an ordinary pawl with its ratchet wheel. The winding of thechains on the shaft is usually accomplished by an intermittent rotarymotion and during the intervals the said lever holds the ratchet againstreverse rotation. During this ratchet engagement the fulcrum studs 7Lmay have engagement with the fulcrum bearing, if desired, but this ofcourse is not necessary.

The lever 7L and its supporting link 7L are related to the ratchet wheelteeth, on the principle of a toggle joint, so that when in position forthe ratchet action of the lever, the toggle joint is just beyond thedead center line, and the tendency of the parts is thus to maintainthemselves in a locked position under pressure from the wheel.

The operating means by which the pivotal support of the detent lever,that is to say its pivot stud 7a, is shifted, comprise a forked linkembracing the said pivot stud 7L and connected by its other end with theshort arm of a knee lever formed of parts marked 71 2' which arefulcrumed on a stud 2' suit ably supported in the strap a andgussetsheet 6. The part marked 2' is the operating handle of the kneelever and of the device as a whole and its length, in proportion to thepart a forming the short arm is such as to constitute a powermultiplying means whereby the power arm of the detent lever may beshifted. In the position of the parts when the said lever has ratchetengagement with the wheel, the handle 2' is in an upright position asshown in the full lines in Fig. 1, and when it is desired to dump thevehicle this handle is pulled down to its dotted line position, therebyrotating the part i to an upright position and shifting the connectinglin k j and pivot stud 71 which latter moves outwardly and upwardly byreason of its support upon the swinging link if. When the handle is inits upright position it may be locked therein by means of a gravitydetent is, which is pivoted at k to the gusset-sheet b and provided witha handle 7?.

The part z' forming the crank arm of the knee lever above referred to,is extended outwardly beyond the edge of the gusset.- sheet where itbears a laterally projecting lug 2' of which the face 2' is adapted toengage the edge of the strap when the operating handle 7? is vertical,and the face i is adapted to engage the strap when the handle is in itshorizontal position, thereby providing positive stops to limit themovement of the handle from its locked to its released position and thusforestalling the danger of the handles being turned more than aquadrant, which in the arrangement shown might reengage the detent teethk with the ratchet wheel during its unwinding movement.

I claim:

1. In combination with a hopper car an operating mechanism for thedischarge doors of the car, comprising a door actuating shaft journaledon the body of the car, a ratchet wheel mounted 011 the shaft, alever-pawl therefor, mounted to receive oscillatory movement from theteeth of the ratchet wheel, a fulcrum bearing for said lever-pawl andmeans for shifting the pawl about its fulcrum to disengage it from theteeth of the ratchet.

2. In combination with a hopper car an operating mechanism for thedischarge doors of the car, comprising a door actuating shaft, journaledon the body of the car, a ratchet wheel mounted on the shaft and havinga part forming a fulcrum abutment, a lever-pawl for engaging the teethof the ratchet wheel, a pivot on which said lever is hung and means forshifting said pivot to move the pawl into engagement with the abutmentand to disengage it from the ratchet teeth.

8. In combination with a hopper car an operating mechanism for the doorsof the car, comprising a door operating shaft, journaled on the body ofthe car, a ratchet wheel, a second class lever movably supported by itspower arm and having a detent tooth for engaging the wheel, a fulcrumbearing for said lever and means for swinging the power arm of the leverabout the fulcrum bearing to disengage the tooth.

4. In combination with a hopper car, an operating mechanism for thedischarge doors of the car, comprising a door actuating shaft journaledon the car body, a ratchet wheel mounted on the shaft, a leverpivotall-y supported by its power arm and having a detent tooth forengaging the ratchet wheel, the lever and the tooth being urged towardthe wheel and being free to oscillate under the action of the ratchetteeth "thereof, a fulcrum bearing for the lever, serving to limit itsmovement toward gagement with the teeth of the wheel and having itspower arm pivotally connected to a pivotally supported link, an abutmentfor engaging the lever inthe movement of the tooth toward the wheel andserving as a fulcrum bearing for the lever in disengaging the tooth fromthe wheel.

6. In combination with a hopper car, an operating mechanism for thedischarge doors of the car, comprising a door actuating shaft journaledon the body of the car, a ratchet wheel mounted on said: shaft leverprovided with a detent tooth for engagement with the wheel and havingits power arm pivotally supported on a pivotally mounted link, the linkand lever being adapted to pass the dead center line, when said toothengages the ratchet wheel, and an abutment for limiting the movement ofthe lever toward the wheel and serving as a fulcrum bearing for thelever in disengag ing the tooth from the wheel.

'7. In combination with a hopper car, an operating mechanism for thedischarge doors of the car, comprising a door actuatmg shaft journaledon the car, a ratchet wheel mounted on the shaft, a detent levertherefor, pivotally supported by its power arm to have ratchetengagement with the wheel, a fulcrum bearing for the lever and meanscomprising a set of power multiplying connections, connected to thepower arm, to swing it in a direction away from the ratchet wheel aboutthe fulcrum bearing.

8. In combinationewith a hopper car, an operating mechanism for thedischarge doors of the car, comprising a door operating shaft journaledon'the body of the car, a rotary Windlass member mounted on the shaft, alever fulcrumed against said memher, and having a detent tooth forengagement therewith and means for shifting the lever about its fulcrumto withdraw the tooth from engagement with said member.

9. In combination with a hopper car, an operating mechanism for thedischarge doors of the car, comprising a door actuating shaft, journaledon the body of the car, a shrouded ratchet wheel mounted on the shaft, adetent lever fulcrumed against the shroud of the wheel and having atooth for ratchet engagement with the teeth of the wheel and means forshifting the lever upon its fulcrum.

10. In combination with a hopper car, an operating mechanism for thedischarge doors of the car, comprising a door actuating shaft journaledon the body of the car, a shrouded ratchet wheel mounted on the shaft, apivotally hung pawl therefor, having a tooth for engaging the ratchetteeth and a part engaging the shroud of the wheel and forming a fulcrumfor the'pawl and means for shifting the pivot of the pawl and therebyswinging the pawl about its fulcrum.

11. In combination with a hopper car, an operating mechanism for thedischarge doors of the car, comprising a door actuating shaft, journaledon the body of the car, a ratchet wheel mounted on the shaft, a detentlever therefor, having a tooth for engaging the teeth of the wheel andmeans for swinging the lever about a shifting fulcrum to withdraw thetooth in the direction of the movement of the ratchet wheel.

12. The combination with a hopper car, of a detent lever pivotallysupported to exert its thrust upwardly against the floor of said car, achain-winding ratchet wheel having ratchet engagement with said lever,and means for shifting the pivotal connection of said lever to shift itout of said ratchet engagement.

13. The combination with a hopper car, of a link pivoted under theinclined floor thereof, a detent lever hung from said link and havingratchet engagement with a chain-winding ratchet-wheel, a fulcrum forsaid lever and means for shifting saidlink and lever to swing the latteron said fulcrum and out of said ratchet engagement. In testimonywhereof, I have signed my name to the specification in the presence oftwo subscribing witnesses.

JOHN M. GOODWIN.

.Witnesses:

MAYME SHERER, A. W. DEAVITT.

copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. G.

